This week in video-game history is a fanboy's delight. With the Xbox 360, DS, Dreamcast, and the Super Famicom hitting the shelves and the launch of World of Warcraft, the hits just keep on coming.
November 21
1990: The Super Famicom is released in Japan. It launched in the U.S. the following August as the Super Nintendo.
1991: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past -- arguably the finest game in the series -- goes on sale.
1998: Rhythm-game mania descends when Dance Dance Revolution debuts.
1998: Everyone's -- besides me, since I hated it -- favorite Zelda game, Ocarina of Time, hits the shelves. I am well aware that "them's fightin' words," Internet.
2000: Phantasy Star Online launches in Japan.
2004: The Nintendo DS dazzles North America when it appears just in time for the holiday rush. But, like most highly prized Nintendo consoles, it was nearly impossible to track one down. This is why I just preorder handhelds now.
2007: The Hitman movie opens in theaters across the country.
November 22
1994: The Sega Saturn launches in Japan and enjoys much more success than it did in the U.S.
1996: Men and teenage boys all over the globe develop a strange obsession with Lara Croft as the first Tomb Raider game hits the shelves. I just enjoyed the jumping and the dinosaur-murdering....
2005: Microsoft ships...a few Xbox 360s for the console's launch. The only way to make sure you got one was to preorder it. Only a few people did, and everyone thought they were crazy, assuming there'd be enough for everyone in stores.
November 23
2004: World of Warcraft casts its dark spell across millions of obsessive gamers when it goes on sale. This date was also the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft series.
November 24
1994: Donkey Kong Country launches.
2003: Penny Arcade found the charity Child's Play which strives to provide entertainment for sick children all across the U.S.
November 25:
1962: Hironobu Sakaguchi is born. He is the creator of the Final Fantasy series, but left Square Enix in 2004 and founded the Mistwalker game studio.
November 26
Every year: People are trampled by Black Friday shopping mobs. Do your part and try to avoid killing anyone as you rush off for a half-price pie maker.
November 27
1998: The Dreamcast launches in Japan. If only Sega had brought this level of marketing enthusiasm to this console rather than wasting it on the Saturn:
